It’s been 13 years since the release of Avatar in theaters, but fans are still enamored with the world of Pandora, and it shows. The re-release in theaters, ahead of the sequel, made $30.5 million its opening weekend, with 93% of moviegoers seeing the film in 3D.
Avatar made $20.5 million internationally, opening as number one in France, Italy, Belgium, Bosnia, Croatia, Hungary, Qatar, and many other markets. Almost 75% of the international box office take comes from 3D, 4D, and IMAX formats alone; as a comparison, Avengers: Endgame’s international box office take from the same formats was around 27%. This is understandable as the film had a large hand in the growth of the popularity of 3D films.
The movie also made $10 million domestically, opening at number three behind Don’t Worry Darling which made $19.2 million, and The Woman King which made $11 million. 93% of domestic moviegoers chose to see the movie in 3D as compared to the release of Thor: Love and Thunder with 10% of moviegoers seeing the movie in 3D. Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore, believes that the draw is the 3D and IMAX presentations, and that “Avatar is serving as a reminder of how cool the imagery of Pandora looks on the big screen.”
With this re-release, director James Cameron continues to break records. Avatar still holds the record as being the highest-grossing film of all time, taking its gross all-time box office to $2.85 billion. Avatar is set in the far future, many years after Earth has depleted its natural resources. Humans have to look elsewhere to survive, and to do this, they aim to colonize the moon of Pandora to mine the mineral known as Unobtainium. However, Pandora, where the Na’vi live, has an atmosphere poisonous to humans. To fully explore, the use of Avatars (human and Na’vi hybrids), are required. Jake Sully, a marine played by Sam Worthington, operates one of the Avatars. In his explorations of Pandora, he falls in love with a Na’vi played by Zoe Saldana, and as a result, is caught between two worlds.
If you want to catch the re-release and experience the world of Pandora again (or for the first time), it is in theaters now. The sequel, named Avatar: The Way of Water, will be released in theaters on December 16. Catch the trailer for Avatar: The Way of Water below: